Healthy family meal planner

Meal Planning Creates Healthy Families

Many people think that meal planning is just too hard. They think it takes too much time, and isn’t worth it since they end up eating out more often than not, so why bother planning meals? It doesn’t matter if you’re a stay at home parent, a working parent, or even a parent at all, the fact is creating a meal plan on a regular basis creates a healthier lifestyle, saves money, and results in happier people.
Meal planning creates healthy families by:
Eliminating Fast Food — If you have a plan and have considered your busy week when you made the plan you’ll be prepared with something you made, instead of running through the drive through. Fast food is not even really food anymore. It is a “food product” which has no nutritional value, tons of added sugar and salt, and leads fairly directly to death.
Providing Happy Family Time — Sitting around a dinner table with lovingly prepared food with your family is a happy time that your children will always remember. If it’s just you and your husband, that’s okay too. Turn off the TV and enjoy the time together. Studies show that regular family meals cuts stress, and encourages family bonding. Being stress free and bonded has a huge impact on health of every individual.

Cutting Back on Waste — If you plan meals properly you’ll buy less food, and have less waste because you’ve considered all the factors in planning that week’s meals. This impacts your health by cleaning up the environment, and in truth, everyone’s health on the planet.
Saving Money On Fuel — We all know that gas causes pollution, so the more you plan your menus around healthy locally grown produce, the less fuel will be used, and the less pollution put into the air. This impacts your health, and everyone else’s too. Imagine, just this small thing can make such a huge difference in the lives of your entire community.
Helping You Lose / Control Weight — About 60 percent of Americans are overweight or obese, most of this is from eating out, and is particularly due to eating fast food. Children are at an even greater risk. In fact, this is the first generation that is not expected to live longer than their parents. If you plan and prepare meals at home, you’re going to avoid a lot of fat and sugar, which is going to cut down your weight in just a short amount of time.
Encouraging Healthier Choices — When you really sit down to plan a menu, putting chips down as a vegetable doesn’t really seem right. Of course, it’s not, but often on hamburger night it’s hamburger, chips or fries, and nothing healthy at all. When you sit down and plan a menu you’re more apt to put healthy choices on the meal plan just because you have to give it some thought and consideration.
It’s clear that meal planning can create an environment where health thrives. What is standing in your way of planning healthy meals for your family?